Taxi/private hire car driver's licence

All vehicles operating as a taxi or private hire car need to be licensed. You can view our film about driving taxis and private hire cars on YouTube.

Before you apply

Owning and driving your own taxi may seem attractive but you should contact others in the trade to find out what the job is really like. You could work as a driver for a short time to decide if this is the right move for you.

If you still fancy the job after doing your research you then need to think about what area you want to cover. There are limits on the number of taxis that are allowed in the Hamilton, East Kilbride and Rutherglen/Cambuslang areas - all of these licences have been issued - but there is no limit in Clydesdale. However, licences can be transferred to a new buyer - this is carried out as a private transaction and then a taxi operators licence application should be made.

There are no limits on the number of private hire vehicles.

Private hire cars can only pick up people who have pre-booked - they can't be hailed in the street or drive about looking for hires. Also, you cannot drive a taxi if you only have a private hire car driver's licence.

The taxi badge and private hire car driver's badge

Your taxi driver's licence lets you work as a driver of a taxi but to get the badge you will need to pass a route test as well as have a licence.

From 1 January 2018 applicants for a new grant of a private hire car driver’s licence will also require to sit and pass a route test as well as have a licence.

Once you pass the route test you won't need to sit it again as long as you renew your driver's licence every three years.